Page 72 of Paved in Hate

I smile and pop another one in my mouth. “You’re going to be a great dad. I can already feel myself wanting to make you proud.”

“You just want more food.”

“It’s called a twofer, Lev, a win-win.”

We watch Matvey move on to the next guy while Lev says, “It’s nice to see your plan to quickly annul your marriage is working so well.”

I laugh and nudge his shoulder with mine. “Yeah, that plan backfired like a motherfucker. I did not see that one coming,” I admit.

“You never do,” Lev says. “I know Jolene knocked me on my ass.”

“Emily, too,” Roman says from the other side of the room.

“Same here,” Danil says with a grin.

“And Alina did the same to me,” Matvey says, punctuating each word with a stab to the next guy’s chest.

“Love will make you do crazy shit,” I say with a laugh, watching my brother eviscerate the half-dead guy on the ground in front of us.

“Man, our ladies have us so fucking whipped.” I smile and pop another fruit snack in my mouth.

Chapter13

Katya

When I wake and find the bed empty, the first thing I do is go looking for Vitaly. It’s still the middle of the night, but I feel his absence strong enough to let me know he didn’t just get up to use the bathroom or get a drink of water. The place feels empty without him, exactly how my life felt before I met him.

Tying the belt of my robe, I make my way downstairs, surprised to see our four assigned bodyguards sitting at the counter drinking coffee. Sergei notices me first and gives me a nod.

“Everything okay?” he asks, causing the other three men to turn around and stare at me.

“Yeah, just wondering where my husband is.” I walk over and fill a mug with coffee because there’s no way in hell I’m going back to bed anytime soon. Leaning against the counter, I face the four men. “So what’s going on?”

Sergei gives a small shrug while Aleksandr scratches at his beard and Grigori becomes very interested in something on his phone. Feliks gives me what’s supposed to be a comforting smile.

“They had to go out and take care of something,” Sergei finally says, “but they’ll be back soon.”

My mind immediately goes to images of Matvey getting loose and going after Alina while his brothers try to stop him. I shudder at the thought of them charging the mansion without a plan in place. I know how many men my brothers have on duty at any given time, and I know how fucking armed they are. This is not going to end well.

Seeing my face, Feliks quickly says, “They didn’t go to your brother's house.”

“Thank fuck,” I groan, relaxing against the counter again. “You about gave me a heart attack.”

Feliks’s face pales. “Please don’t fucking do that. Your husband will kill me if something happens to you.”

I give him a reassuring smile. “I’m fine. No passing out or heart attacks, I promise.”

He lets out a relieved sigh right before Sergei says, “They just pulled up.”

I dash around the kitchen island so I can see the screen the men are looking at. The image is black and white and not the clearest picture I’ve ever seen, but I immediately recognize my husband as soon as he steps out of the SUV. He’s laughing and looking over at Lev while they all walk towards the elevators. We watch them make the ride up, and it isn’t until I hear the ding and see the doors open that I realize what they’ve really been up to.

“Holy shit,” I whisper, watching Matvey step into the hall. He’s covered in dried blood. His hoodie is drenched in it and so are his hands and face. “Are you hurt?”

He gives me a rare smile and shakes his head. “Not a scratch on me.”

As he walks by, I look at Roman, who’s not quite as bloody as Matvey, but still pretty damn soaked in it. He just smiles and shrugs before giving my head a soft pat and walking past me to the kitchen. Lev gives me a friendly wink while Danil laughs and gently nudges my shoulder. Vitaly is the last one to step out of the elevator, and as soon as he sees me, his gorgeous face breaks into a huge grin.

“Baby, what are you doing up?”

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